Jim Ferlo's election to the state Senate has left his District 7 City Council seat vacant and six candidates are seeking to claim it in a Feb. 25 special election.
With Pittsburgh's economic position so perilous that its budget was balanced on the back of two taxes not yet approved by the Legislature, the ideal candidate would be someone who combined a fresh outlook with the community ties that were Mr. Ferlo's hallmark. By this standard, most of the candidates don't quite fit the bill.
The 7th District includes Lawrence-ville, Stanton Heights and parts of Bloomfield, Friendship, Highland Park, Morningside, North Oakland and Polish Hill. This is safe territory for Democrats, which makes the candidacy of Bruce Brantley, a 69-year-old Republican from Highland Park, quixotic. Mr. Brantley dreams unrealistically of audits that will identify waste and allow taxes to be cut even as the city struggles to stay afloat.
Bob Stumpp, 55, an independent, is currently the senior policy manager for the Allegheny County Department of Human Services. He has a great deal of experience in government both in this area and in Philadelphia -- perhaps too much. He may be not able to bring the freshest pair of eyes to the job.
The acknowledged favorite is an insider of another sort -- Len Bodack, 46, the operations director of the Allegheny County Democratic Party and the nominated Democrat in this race. He is the son of retired state Sen. Leonard Bodack, and without that distinction his candidacy wouldn't amount to much. The fact is that he hasn't done much other than work for the party. His way, we fear, would be the old way of political business around here.
To some extent, the old-fashioned political approach is also embodied by Nancy A. Noszka, 43, who must run as an independent but has a strong background in the Democratic Party and holds views to gladden the hearts of the old-line faithful (no to reducing the number of fire stations, no to privatization of garbage services, no to merging more city functions like 911 service with the county).
Although the Post-Gazette differs with Ms. Noszka on some of the issues, we were impressed with her experience and savvy. For those voters who wanted an old-style approach, she offers a good alternative to Mr. Bodack. Currently working as a sales executive at a real estate firm, she was the executive director of the Lawrenceville Corp. for 12 years.
Independent Renee Farrow, 44, a business owner in Morningside, is more in tune with this newspaper on the issues. But a troubling asterisk attaches to her name in this race.
In her campaign literature, she quotes Post-Gazette editorials, columns and stories selectively to the point of being misleading. For example, a collective reference to a group of candidates in Editor John G. Craig Jr.'s "To The Point" column is cited as if it were about her alone. The kindest interpretation is that the several misrepresentations were the work of an overzealous campaign aide. But even if she was not intentionally being dishonest, in our view her lack of attention to detail is disqualifying.
That leaves Mitch Kates, 38, an art gallery owner who has a wealth of community experience and is running as an independent. He is president of the Highland Park Community Club, a board member of East Liberty Development Inc., president of the Homewood Montessori PTO and an assistant wrestling coach at Schenley High School. (Mr. Kates himself was a collegiate and professional wrestler.)
In some ways, Mr. Kates is the epitome of the young people Pittsburgh is trying to attract or keep. His views are not bound by the past. He recognizes that the city is in dire financial straits and favors a statewide commuter tax, although he believes the payroll preparation tax is a palatable alternative. He would favor reducing the number of fire stations and merging city functions.
We think he meets the criteria for this position. The Post-Gazette endorses Mitch Kates in the 7th council district.
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